Cleveland Browns complete personnel staff, make six additions

Browns general manager Ray Farmer completed his personnel department by naming six additions to the staff on June 23.
Charles Bailey, Bobby DePaul, Mike Hagen, Ron Hill and James Kirkland were added as senior personnel associates. Scott Aligo has joined the staff as a player personnel associate. The Browns also promoted Sam DeLuca and Harrison Ritcher to player personnel associate, and promoted Colton Chapple to BLESTO scout.
Bill Kuharich was named executive chief of staff and Morocco Brown vice president of player personnel earlier this month.
“Assembling this group is an important step for our team,” Farmer said in a statement released by the Browns. “These individuals operate out of the spotlight, but their work is critical to our success.
“And contrary to what some may think, scouts work 12 months out of the year. Their families sacrifice a lot, and I appreciate all the days scouts spend away from home. Our simple philosophy is to identify and acquire players who can return winning football to our loyal fans. We’re committed to building our roster through the draft, developing that talent once it’s here, and retaining it. Each of these people is central in that process.”
Brian Decker (player personnel strategist), Brendan Donovan (research specialist, college), Frank Edgerly (senior pro scout), Ken Kovash (director of football research and player personnel assistant), Deb Kruszynski (executive assistant), Jon Sandusky (director of player personnel) and Dan Saganey (pro scout) join college area scouts Zac Bocian, Patrick Moore, Chisom Opara and Bobby Vega, to complete the team’s 2014 player personnel staff.
Here is a brief biography of each of the additions to the personnel department:
Charles Bailey: Bailey served as the pro personnel director for the Jacksonville Jaguars from 2003-08. Before working with the Jaguars, Bailey spent 10 years with the Pittsburgh Steelers as a scout and pro personnel coordinator until 1999. After Pittsburgh, he worked as the vice president of football operations and assistant general manager of the New Orleans Saints.
Bonny DePaul: DePaul played linebacker at Maryland before coaching three years at Catholic University. He then served as an assistant coach with the Washington Redskins (1989-93) and the Cincinnati Bengals (1994-96). DePaul then transitioned to personnel with the Philadelphia Eagles from 1997-2000. After serving as the pro personnel director for the Chicago Bears from 2001-09, DePaul returned to the Eagles working as a pro advance scout. In 22 years in the NFL, DePaul has helped his teams earn four Coach of the Year awards, five division titles, two Super Bowl appearances and one Super Bowl victory.
Ron Hill: Hill has 34 years of experience as an NFL scout and player personnel executive, most recently serving as the NFL’s vice president of football operations. Hill began his career as a college scout for the Dallas Cowboys, and then worked his way up to regional scout and assistant director of player personnel with the Denver Broncos. He then worked as the Jacksonville Jaguars’ director of pro personnel before serving as the Atlanta Falcons’ vice president of football operations and vice president of player personnel for seven years. Over the course of his time on NFL personnel staffs, Hill has been a part of 10 conference championship berths and four Super Bowls.
Mike Hagen: Hagen was most recently working as a scouting consultant with the NFL football operations department. Over the course of Hagen’s 27 years in the league, he has worked with four Super Bowl teams in both executive and player personnel positions. Hagen was on staff for Super Bowls with the Falcons (XXXIII) and the Redskins (XXVI), and made multiple Super Bowl trips with the Broncos (XXII, XXIV) and Cowboys (XXVII, XXVIII). From 2010-12, Hagen worked as the assistant general manager/pro personnel director of the Toronto Argonauts in the Canadian Football League. His brother, Steve, is a former Browns assistant coach.
James Kirkland: Kirkland most recently worked as a pro scout for the Tennessee Titans in 2013. He got his NFL start as a volunteer scouting intern with the Falcons. Kirkland was hired by the Browns in 2004 as an area scout. He was later promoted to assistant director of pro personnel in 2007. After three seasons in that role, Kirkland worked with the Chicago Bears from 2010-12 as a pro scouting assistant, a pro scout and an area scout.
Scott Aligo: Aligo was most recently the defensive ends coach for the University of Northern Colorado football team. Aligo also spent time as an assistant at Texas A&M, Oklahoma State and Washburn. Prior to coaching, he served as a player personnel assistant with the Kansas City Chiefs from 2005-09.

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About the Author

Jeff has covered the Cleveland Browns since 1981. He also covers the Lake Erie Monsters of the American Hockey League and the Cleveland Gladiators in the Arena Football League. Reach the author at jschudel@news-herald.com
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